Buy American! Marble Countertops for Kitchen Remodel
Danby Marble, quarried in the US — A great choice for Kitchen and Bath countertops.
If you are considering marble for your kitchen counter tops, Danby is a terrific choice! Danby Marble is quarried in the US.
Marble performance in Kitchens.
For the past two decades marble has gotten bad press for kitchen remodels. OK, Given: Across the board, marble is not as impervious as Granite. (SAT word… In other words, granite is more...

Lights, Camera…Blog!
This far North Dallas home is being gradually personalized. It was a great spec house in a great location and a great neighborhood, with a great floor plan and a great yard. And it was available quickly without a lot of custom build angst. The downside of such a deal was that some design elements seemed more suited to someone else’s house–
This year Lighting is...

Handscraped Hickory
How about a pretty quick way to get a pretty wood floor! These Plano clients wanted a warmer, more unified, more updated floor. Earlier they had installed new tile in the Bathrooms and Laundry. We left carpet in three Bedrooms and installed hardwood everywhere else. Bella Cera’s American Hickory Rustic Sienna Hand Scraped 5″ planks were selected.
Each plank of engineered wood is real(!) wood. Layers of wood are assembled in...

Move-In Arrangement: Rearrangement
BEFORE
BEFORE
New homeowners in Allen had finished unpacking and set up housekeeping. They had accomplished an amazing amount the first four weeks in their new home but had run up against a hard time-and-health deadline. Decorating on a Shoe String was contacted to finish up. We were to hang art/certificates in the Study and arrange existing decor on kitchen cabinet tops.
AFTER
We used the client’s china collections as decor in the Kitchen...

If you have to Wait….: Commercial Design
If you have to wait…. this commercial office building in Firewheel is a nice place to do it! Oriental rugs, purchased by the doctor early in the process, determined the design palette. Several large oil paintings pick up the hues in the carpets and are set off by the wall color selected, Sherwin Williams Sawdust.
20 new chairs in two coordinating fabrics were purchased through Resource Designs in Addison. Upholstered furniture from...

Every child is an artist.
The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.
-Pablo Picasso
In the community of North Dallas dwells a mom so efficient, organized, and family focused, she could strike fear into hearts of other moms. As her children grow, she has adapted her home to fit her family’s needs. So, when the youngest requested her very own...

Despite having both Media and Game rooms, the children of this far North Dallas home prefer to hang out with their parents in the Great room. Is it because of the extra comfortable seating? Maybe. Is it because they enjoy their parents’ sparkling wit and wisdom? Perhaps. For me, personally, it would be because of the proximity to the kitchen.
Regardless...

First Apartment
…Well, at least the first paid for with his own salary. This would happen to be my favorite nephew in Tejas.
The apartment had good bones?…Or more specifically, a great window and a greater number than necessary square feet.
This would be a budget makeover. We were cost conscious.
It doesn’t take MUCH: But it does take SOME money, a weekend,...

Form.
Update!
It was a nice house in a lovely neighborhood. The home owners were oh-so-ready to start some updates. The baths particularly smacked of the 90’s: Cultured marble, pickled stain, gold plumbing fixtures, white tile. They would start upstairs.
Before
After
Function.
Rethink the tub.
The tub would probably never be used for a bath. The...

Formals need attention.
Function of the Living Room.
The formal Living Room in this Allen home was “no man’s land”. The piano which does get played, was here ….otherwise, the formal LR was unused. Though there was seating in the Living Room, the Family Room was — and would continue to be — the gathering place of choice: The FR had a TV, a...

First Impression.
A riddle: What can take a beating but look classy enough to make a great first impression? How about…. patterned Entry Stair carpet?
To the right and left of the front door this Plano home had great formals, but straight ahead was a blah stairway.
Before
After
Stair...

“Enough togetherness!” people (parents?) are saying today. We keep re-learning that limitations of duration and/or degree can make time spent together more enjoyable! Segueing now from a holiday conclusion to a structural issue: Divide and Conquer!
Remodel- Reconfigure
Game Room Remodel
An open Game Room in this west Plano home had served its purpose. Its...

Affordable Cabinet Update.
The stained cabinets in this Fairview home were ho-hum and outdated. As part of a larger kitchen remodel, the cabinets needed attention. Knowing that cabinets would be costly to replace, we decided that paint and some modifications would give us the updated look we were after.
Cabinet Modification: Farm Sink.
The base cabinet was modified and the...

Remodel: Lighting Update.
Yes, I gave it a spin…! The lighting in this home needed updating. The owner of this Addison vacation home was aiming for a playful look. The lighting project was offloaded to Decorating on a Shoe String.
Lighting Vendor.
We ordered this fun lighting fixture from Lamps Plus. It added the whimsey we were looking for. Though the price was good, we...

Finishing touches: Accessories and color add warmth.
What they had: a beautiful new home in Allen, recently purchased rug and seating, with a TV front and center!
What they wanted? Color! Warmth. Lamps. Art. An inviting feel! Finishing touches!
Both with book shelves flanking the fireplace and a TV over the...

Decorating on a Shoe String, a service for the cost-conscious, has many happy clients in the Dallas metroplex communities of Plano, McKinney, Frisco, Prosper, Fairview, Murphy, Heath, North Dallas and Westlake.
The company was founded by Ginny Andrews 15 years ago and has morphed to offer turn-key residential remodeling and commercial design as well as furniture and accessory selection, re-arrangement, custom window treatments and window products.